Dual-function food plate

ABSTRACT

The present invention allows a user to hold a plate of food and a drink with one hand, leaving the other free. The present invention has recesses or removable portions defined by weakening lines at the rim of the food plate. A user can create recesses at the edge of the food plate by tearing off the removable portions. The present invention can be used as a traditional food plate to hold a plate of food. A user also can use it to hold both a plate of food and a drink with one hand by detaching the removable sections and inserting his/her fingers into the recesses to hold the drink container and the food plate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/975,858, filed on Dec. 21, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/221,670, filed on Mar. 21, 2014, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/905,977, filed on Nov. 19, 2013. This application also claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/438,463, filed on Dec. 23, 2016.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a food plate and more specifically relates to a food plate that enables a user to simultaneously hold a plate of food and a drink container with one hand, leaving the other hand free.

2. Description of the Related Art

In many social events such as parties and picnics, it is quite common that a person walks around to socialize with other people during a meal. He/she usually holds a plate of food with one hand and a fork or spoon with the other hand, which makes it difficult to carry a drink along with a plate of food. Not being able to carry both a plate of food and a drink during social events is a long-standing problem.

Many people have tried to solve the problem through various inventions. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,373, McKee disclosed a plate having a central area configured to hold and support a drink container. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,695,052, Damato reported a food plate comprising an adaptable cavity on a food plate. The cavity is used to hold a drink container. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,138,860 issued to Comeaux, a plate and glass assembly was invented to enable a person to hold both the plate and glass single handed. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,425,480, Krueger reported a portable device that combines a drink container and food tray. In addition to many issued patents, there are several commercial products addressing the problem in the market.

However, these inventions and products have weaknesses. Some of them increase manufacturing costs, and some of them are difficult or awkward to use. The present invention solves the above problem by having recesses at the rim of the food plate or detachable sections on the food plate. These detachable sections are connected with the rest of the food plate through perforated lines or other kind of weakening lines. Once the removable sections are completely detached from the plate, recesses appear on the plate. A user can insert his/her thumb and index finger into the recesses to hold the drink container placed on the top of the plate, which enable the user to simultaneously hold both a plate of food and a drink with one hand.

Although some inventors have used perforation to create detachable portions on a food plate, the structures and purposes of their inventions are different from the present invention. For example, in US patent titled Conversation Generator (U.S. Pat. No. 7,093,832), Mary Louise Parker invented a plate for generating conversations. The invention uses perforated lines to create detachable tabs on a food plate, and text materials are written on the back side of the tabs. A user can use the written topics on the back side of the tabs to initiate conversations during parties. In the US patent titled Portion Access Pie Plate (U.S. Pat. No. 3,580,484), the inventor uses lines of weakening to define a detachable portion of a pie plate from the rest of the plate for the purpose of easily taking a pie out of the plate. In the US patent titled Condiment-carrying Lid (U.S. Pat. No. 6,209,748 B1), Lee Wayne Dunbar creates a perforated drinking section along an edge of a cup lid, allowing a user to inserting additives in the drink. In the US patent application titled Interlocking Storage Carton (US Patent Application No. 20030006273), Micah Tsern invented an interlocking carton, which can be easily assembled for storing food.

The patents mentioned in the above paragraph utilize weakening lines to define detachable sections on a surface, but they have different structures and functions from the present invention, and they were invented to solve different problems from the present invention does. Therefore, they are not prior arts for the present invention.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention enables a person to hold simultaneously both a plate of food and a drink with one hand, leaving the other hand free. The present invention uses weakening lines on a food plate to define detachable sections on the food plate. Without removing the detachable sections, a user can use the present invention as a traditional food plate. If a user chooses to use the unique function of the present invention, he/she can detach the removable sections from the plate, which creates two recesses near the rim of the plate. A user can insert his/her fingers into the recesses and simultaneously hold the plate and a drink placed on the top of the plate with one hand. Another version of the present invention is that there is at least one recess near the edge of the food plate, a user can insert his/her fingers into the recess or recesses and simultaneously hold the plate and a drink placed on the top of the plate with one hand. And another version of the present invention is that the present invention uses a weakening line on a food plate to define a detachable section on the food plate. Without removing the detachable section, a user can use the present invention as a traditional food plate. If a user chooses to use the unique function of the present invention, he/she can detach a removable section from the plate, which creates a hole on the food plate. A user can place a drink container in it, and then hold both the food plate and a drink container with one hand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows a food plate with perforated lines on the plate.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows two recesses on the food plate.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It illustrates how to use the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows a food plate with perforated lines and a ridge on the plate.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows two recesses and a ridge on the plate.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows a food plate with perforated lines on the plate.

FIG. 7 is a top view an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective, cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective, cross-sectional view of the lips of an embodiment of the present invention, showing details of the lips.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows two recesses on the food plate.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows two recesses on the food plate.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows a food plate with a perforated line on the plate.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows one recess on the food plate.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It illustrates how to use the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Embodiment I

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is a food plate 11 comprising a flat surface for holding food, a raised lip around the perimeter for preventing food from falling off the flat surface, and two rectangular sections 13 defined by perforated lines 12. The diameter and the height of the food plate 11 are 25 centimeters (cm) and 2.5 cm, respectively. The length and width of the rectangular sections 13 defined by the perforated lines 12 are 4 cm and 3 cm, respectively. The present invention is made of paper with a thickness of 1 millimeter (mm).

FIG. 1 shows that the present invention looks like a commonly used food plate on the market except for having perforated lines 12 on the plate 11. These perforated lines 12 define the locations, shapes, and sizes of the two removable sections 13 on the lip of the food plate 11. Without detaching the removable sections 13 from the plate 11, a user can use the present invention as a traditional food plate.

The physical dimensions of the present invention do not have to be exactly the same as stated above. For example, the diameter of the food plate 11 does not have to be 25 cm. The diameter can be any number, such as from 15 cm to 35 cm. The height of the present invention does not have to be 2.5 cm. The height can be any number, such as from 1 centimeter to 5 cm. The length of the removable sections 13 defined by the perforated lines 12 does not have to be 4 cm. The length can be any numbers, such as from 2 cm to 8 cm. The width of the removable sections 13 defined by perforated lines 12 do not have to be 3 cm. The width can be any number, such as from 1 cm to 6 cm. In addition, the shape of the plate 11 does not have to be round, and the shapes of the removable sections 13 do not have to be rectangles. They can be any shape, such as square, round, part of a round, ellipse, part of an ellipse, regular or irregular.

Furthermore, the two removable sections 13 do not have to be identical. The two removable sections 13 can be in different shapes and sizes. The perforated lines 12 do not have to be perforated lines; they can be other weakening lines, such as partially cut lines. Even though the food plate 11 is made of 1 mm thick paper, the present invention is not limited to the material and thickness. For example, it can be made of other materials, such as foam, plastic, pulp, or wood, and can have thickness from 0.1 mm to 5 mm.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention after the sections 13 (FIG. 1) being removed from the food plate 11 (FIG. 1). FIG. 2 shows two recesses 22 and one handle 23 appearing at the lip of the food plate 21. A user can insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 22 to simultaneously hold a plate of food as well as a drink placed on the food plate 21. This is illustrated in FIG. 3. The recesses 22 are sized to allow a person, minor or adult, to insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 22, and the handle 23 is sized to be able to rest on the area between the end of the thumb and the end of the index finger of the user. In the current design, the handle 23 is a rectangle having 4 cm length and 3.5 cm width. However, the shape and the size of the handle 23 of the present invention do not have to be the same as the current design. The length of the handle 23 can be any size, such as from 1 centimeter to 8 cm, and the width of the handle 23 can be any number, such as from 1 centimeter to 7 cm. The shape of the handle 23 can be any shape, such as square, round, ellipse, etc., regular or irregular. Furthermore, the two recesses 22 do not have to be identical.

FIG. 3 shows how to use the novel feature of the present invention. The hand 31 and the cup 32 drawn in dashed lines in the figure are not part of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows that once the removable sections 13 (FIG. 1) are removed from the plate 11 (FIG. 1), a person can put his/her fingers through the recesses 22 (FIG. 2) and hold both the plate 21 and the cup 32 simultaneously with one hand. After the user places his/her fingers in the recesses 22 (FIG. 2), the handle 23 rests on the area between the end of the thumb and the end of the index finger of the user. The function of the handle 23 is to help a user hold the food plate steadily.

The novelty of the present invention is that a user has options of either using the present invention as a traditional food plate, or as a novel food plate that allows the user to hold both a plate of food and a drink container simultaneously with one hand, leaving the other hand free.

Embodiment II

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is a food plate 41 comprising a flat surface for holding food, a raised lip around the perimeter for preventing food from falling off the flat surface, two rectangular sections 42 defined by perforated lines 43, and a curved ridge 44 dividing the plate 41 into two sections. The diameter and the height of the food plate 41 are 25 cm and 2.5 cm, respectively. The length and width of the rectangular sections 42 are 4 cm and 3 cm, respectively. The largest height of the ridge 44 is 2.5 cm. The present invention is made of paper with a thickness of 1 mm.

FIG. 4 shows that the present invention looks like a commonly used food plate except for having perforated lines 43 on the plate 41. These perforated lines 43 define the locations, shapes, and sizes of the two removable sections 42 on the lip of the food plate 41. Without detaching the removable sections 42 from the plate 41, the present invention can be used as a traditional food plate.

The physical dimensions of the present invention do not have to be exactly the same as stated above. For example, the diameter of the food plate 41 does not have to be 25 cm. The diameter can be any number, such as from 15 cm to 35 cm. The height of the present invention does not have to be 2.5 cm. The height can be any number, such as from 1 centimeter to 5 cm. The length of the removable sections 42 defined by the perforated lines 43 does not have to be 4 cm. The length can be any numbers, such as from 2 cm to 8 cm. The width of the removable sections 42 defined by perforated lines 43 do not have to be 3 cm. The width can be any number, such as from 1 cm to 6 cm. In addition, the shape of the plate 41 does not have to be round, and the shapes of the removable sections 42 do not have to be rectangles. They can be any shape, such as square, round, part of a round, ellipse, part of an ellipse, regular or irregular.

Furthermore, the two removable sections 42 do not have to be identical. The two removable sections 42 can be in different shapes and sizes. The perforated lines 43 do not have to be perforated lines; they can be other weakening lines, such as partially cut lines. Even though the food plate 41 is made of 1 mm thick paper, the present invention is not limited to the material and thickness. For example, it can be made of other materials, such as foam, plastic, wood, or pulp, and can have thickness from 0.1 mms to 5 mms.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention after the detachable sections 42 (FIG. 4) being removed from the food plate 41 (FIG. 4). FIG. 5 shows two recesses 52 and one handle 53 appearing at the lip of the food plate 51. A user can insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 52 to simultaneously hold a drink as well as food. After the user places his/her fingers in the recesses 52, the handle 53 rests on the area between the end of the thumb and the end of the index finger of the user. The function of the handle 53 is to help a user hold the food plate steadily.

The recesses 52 are sized to allow a person, minor or adult, to insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 52, and the handle 53 is sized to be able to rest on the area between the end of the thumb and the end of the index finger of the user. In the current design, the handle 53 is a rectangle having 4 cm length and 3.5 cm width. However, the shape and the sizes of the handle 53 of the present invention do not have to be the same as the current design. The handle 53 can be any size. For example, its length can be from 1 cm to 8 cm, and its width can be from 1 cm to 7 cm. The shape of the handle 53 can be any shape, such as square, round, ellipse, and others, regular or irregular. Furthermore, the two recesses 52 do not have to be identical.

The novelty of the present invention is that a user has options of either using the present invention as a traditional food plate, or as a novel food plate that allows the user to hold both a plate of food and a drink container simultaneously with one hand, leaving the other hand free.

Embodiment III

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is a food plate 60 comprising a flat surface 65 for holding food, an inner raised lip 64 around the perimeter of the flat surface 65 for preventing food from falling off the flat surface 65, an outer lip 61 around the perimeter of the inner lip 64 helps holding the food plate 60 easily, and two removable sections 63 defined by perforated lines 62. The diameter and the height of the food plate 60 are 25 cm and 2.5 cm, respectively. The present invention is made of paper with a thickness of 1 mm.

FIG. 6 shows that the present invention looks like a commonly used food plate on the market except for having perforated lines 62 on the inner lip 64 and outer lip 61 of the food plate 60. These perforated lines 62 define the locations, shapes, and sizes of the two removable sections 63. Without detaching the removable sections 63 from the food plate 60, a person can use the present invention as a traditional food plate.

FIG. 7 is a top view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows that a round flat surface 65 is connected with an annulus inner lip 64, and the inner lip 64 is connected with an annulus outer lip 61, and two removable sections 63 defined by perforated lines 62 are on the inner lip 64 and outer lip 61 only, not in touch with the flat surface 65. The radius of the flat surface 65 is 9 cm; the larger radius of annular inner lip 64 is 10.5 cm, and the larger radius of annular outer lip 61 is 12.5 cm. The shape of each removable section 63 is a combination of a trapezoid and a circular segment. The circular segment connects to the shorter base of the trapezoid. The longer base of the trapezoid is 3.3 cm; the short base of the trapezoid is 2.6 cm; the height of the trapezoid is 2.7 cm, and the radius of the circular segment is 1.6 cm. The center-to-center distance of the two removable sections 63 is 7 cm.

FIG. 8 is a perspective, cross-sectional view of the food plate 60 (FIG. 6). It shows the inner lip 64 raises gradually from the flat surface 65, and the outer lip 61 curves down. The function of the inner lip 64 is to prevent food on the flat surface 65 from falling off the food plate 60, and the outer lip 61 is for a user to easily hold the food plate 60.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged, cross-sectional view of the lips 61 and 64. The inner lip 64 is curved up. The height and radius of the inner lip 64 is 2.5 cm and 2.6 cm, respectively. The outer lip 61 is curved downward. The outer lip 61 gradually curves down 0.5 cm and then becomes flat, and the radius of the outer lip 61 is 1.7 cm.

Although exact physical dimensions are given above, the physical dimensions of the present invention do not have to be exactly the same as stated above. They can be other numbers. For example, the radius of the food plate 60 can be any number, such as from 7 cm to 20 cm. The height of the paper plate 60 can be any number, such as from 1 cm to 8 cm. The longer base of the trapezoid can be from 2 cm to 8 cm. The short base of the trapezoid can be from 1 cm to 7 cm, and the height of the trapezoid can be from 1 cm to 8 cm. The center-to-center distance of the two removable sections 63 can be from 3 cm to 15 cm.

In addition, the shape of the plate 60 does not have to be round, and the shapes of the removable sections 63 do not have to be a combination of a trapezoid and a circular segment. They can be any shape, such as rectangular, square, round, partially round, ellipse, part of an ellipse, regular or irregular. The shapes and sizes of the two removable sections 63 do not have to be identical. They can have different shapes and sizes. The perforated lines 62 do not have to be perforated lines; they can be other weakening lines, such as partially cut lines. Even though the food plate 60 is made of 1 mm thick paper, the present invention is not limited to that material and thickness. For example, it can be made of other materials, such as foam, plastic, pulp, or wood, and can have thickness from 0.1 mm to 5 mm.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention after the sections 63 (FIG. 6) being removed from the food plate 60 (FIG. 6). FIG. 10 shows two recesses 103 and one handle 102 appearing on the food plate 100. A user can insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 103 to simultaneously hold a drink and a plate of food with one hand. The recesses 103 are sized to allow a person, minor or adult, to insert his/her index finger and thumb into the recesses 103. The shape and size of the handle 102 is defined by the locations, shapes, and sizes of the recesses 103, and is sized to be able to rest on the area between the end of the thumb and the end of the index finger of a user. The handle 102 helps a user to hold the food plate 100 better.

The novelty of the present invention is that a user has options of either using the present invention as a traditional food plate, or as a novel food plate that allows the user to hold both a plate of food and a drink container simultaneously with one hand, leaving the other hand free.

Embodiment IV

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. The figure shows that the present invention looks like a commonly used food plate except for having two recesses 112 and a handle 113 at the edge of the food plate 11. The radius and the height of the food plate are 12.5 cm and 2.5 cm, respectively. The shape of each recess 112 is a combination of a trapezoid and a circular segment. The circular segment connects to the shorter base of the trapezoid. The longer base of the trapezoid is 3.3 cm; the short base of the trapezoid is 2.6 cm; the height of the trapezoid is 2.7 cm, and the radius of the circular segment is 1.6 cm. The center-to-center distance of the two recesses 112 is 7 cm. The shape and size of the handle 113 is defined by the shapes, sizes, and locations of the recesses 112.

Although exact physical dimensions are given above, the physical dimensions of the present invention do not have to be exactly the same as stated above. The physical dimensions can be other numbers. For example, the radius of the food plate 111 can be from 7 cm to 20 cm; the height of the paper plate 111 can be from 1 cm to 8 cm; the length of the longer base of the trapezoid can be from 2 cm to 8 cm; the length of the short base of the trapezoid can be a number from 1 cm to 7 cm; the height of the trapezoid can be from 1 cm to 8 cm, and the center-to-center distance of the two recesses 112 can be from 2 cm to 15 cm. The radius of the circular segment can be other numbers too.

In addition, the shape of the plate 111 does not have to be round, and the shapes of the two recesses 112 do not have to be a combination of a trapezoid and a circular segment. They can be any shape, such as rectangular, square, round, partially round, ellipse, part of an ellipse, regular or irregular. The shapes and sizes of the two recesses 112 do not have to be identical. They can have different shapes and sizes. Even though the food plate 111 is made of 1 mm thick paper, the present invention is not limited to that material and thickness. For example, it can be made of other materials, such as foam, plastic, pulp, or wood, and can have thickness from 0.1 mms to 5 mm.

The novelty of the present invention is that a user has options of either using the present invention as a traditional food plate, or as a novel food plate that allows the user to hold both a plate of food and a drink container simultaneously with one hand, leaving the other hand free.

Embodiment V

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is a round food plate comprising a flat surface for holding food, a lip around the perimeter of the flat surface for preventing food from falling off the flat surface, and one removable section 121 defined by a perforated line 122. The present invention is made of paper with a thickness of 1 mm, and its diameter and the height are 25 cm and 2.5 cm, respectively. The perforated line 122 defines the location, shape, and size of a removable section 121 on the food plate 120. Without detaching the removable section 121 from the plate 120, a person can use the present invention as a traditional food plate.

The shapes and sizes of the food plate 120 and the removable section 121 do not have to be the same as described above. For example, they can be can other shapes, such as square, round, ellipse, regular shape or irregular.

The removable section 121 defined by the perforated line 122 should be large enough for a drink container or part of the container. Although in the current design, the removable section 121 is at the edge of the plate 120, it can be at any location on the plate 120.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. It shows a recess 132 appearing at the edge of the food plate 131 after the removable section 121 (FIG. 12) is detached from the plate 120 (FIG. 12).

FIG. 14 shows how to use the food plate 131. The hand 141 and the cup 142 drawn in dashed lines in the figure are not parts of the present invention. FIG. 13 shows that once the removable section 121 (FIG. 12) is removed from the plate 120 (FIG. 12), a person can place a cup 142 into the recess 132 (FIG. 13) and hold both the plate 131 and the cup 14 with one hand.

The above embodiments are presented for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Other modifications can be undertaken by a skilled artisan without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. 

I claim:
 1. A food plate for a person to simultaneously hold both a plate of food and a drink with one hand, comprising: a substantially flat surface for holding food; a raised lip around the perimeter of said substantially flat surface for preventing food from falling off said substantially flat surface; at least one removable portion on said food plate; weakening lines that define the shapes, sizes, and locations of said removable portion(s), wherein at least one cavity is created when said removable portion(s) defined by said weakening lines are completely detached from said food plate; wherein a handle is created when said removable portions defined by said weakening lines are completely detached from said food plate; wherein said cavity or cavities are sized capable of accommodating an index finger and a thumb of a hand of a user such that the user is capable of inserting the index finger and the thumb into said cavities.
 2. The invention of claim 1, wherein said weakening lines that define said removable portions are perforated lines or incomplete cuts.
 3. The invention of claim 1, wherein the shapes of said removable portions are regular or irregular shaped.
 4. The invention of claim 1, wherein the height of said raised lip increases first and then decreases near the edge of said food plate.
 5. The invention of claim 1, wherein said removable portions are surrounded by at least one raised ridge on said substantially flat surface.
 6. A food plate for a person to simultaneously hold both a plate of food and a drink with one hand, comprising: a substantially flat surface for holding food; a raised lip around the perimeter of said substantially flat surface for preventing food from falling off said substantially flat surface; at least two cavities at or near the perimeter of said food plate; wherein said cavities are sized capable of accommodating an index finger and a thumb of a hand of a user such that the user is capable of inserting the index finger and the thumb into said cavities.
 7. The invention of claim 6, wherein the shapes of said cavity is regular or irregular shaped.
 8. The invention of claim 6, wherein the height of said raised lip increases first and then decreases near the edge of said food plate.
 9. A food plate for a person to simultaneously hold both a plate of food and a drink with one hand, comprising: a substantially flat surface for holding food; a raised lip around the perimeter of said substantially flat surface for preventing food from falling off said substantially flat surface; a removable portion at or near the perimeter of said food plate; weakening lines that define the shape, size, and location of said removable portion,
 10. The invention of claim 9, wherein the shape of said removable portion is regular or irregular shaped.
 11. The invention of claim 9, wherein said weakening lines that define said removable portions are perforated lines or incomplete cuts.
 12. The invention of claim 9, wherein the height of said raised lip increases first and then decreases near the edge of said food plate. 